Australian universities are anticipated to roll out a brand new sort of qualification often called an ‘apprenticeship diploma’ throughout the subsequent six months, following fast progress in pupil take up since their launch within the UK in 2015.
Also called graduate apprenticeships, they work loads like conventional commerce apprenticeships by bolting on a level round employment.
Thus far, Australian college leaders have remained comparatively quiet on what some thought may be a recreation changer in increased schooling and change into a everlasting fixture on our increased schooling panorama.
‘Practice for a job, receives a commission and earn a level’ is the catchcry of these advertising diploma apprenticeships within the UK.
Launched to deal with acute expertise shortages in particular industries, diploma apprenticeships within the UK at the moment are being supplied throughout an intensive vary of areas together with however not restricted to aerospace engineering, enterprise administration, building, defence, finance, nursing, public relations and social work.
The UK mannequin is predicated on apprentices working for an organisation round 70 to 80 per cent of the time and attending a accomplice college (head to head or nearly) for the remaining time.
UK apprentices earn a wage and don’t pay college tuition charges, that are coated by the federal government and their employer.
As much as 20,000 college students begin their course annually for the 100-plus diploma apprenticeships supplied.
Firms partnered within the supply of diploma apprenticeships within the UK embrace Airbus, BAE Methods, BMS Group UK, Rolls-Royce, Laing O’Rourke, Fujitsu, AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Siemens.
Within the UK, diploma apprenticeships can be found at each undergraduate and postgraduate ranges.
Australia’s adoption of diploma apprenticeships would possibly greatest be described as lukewarm, with simply two diploma apprentice packages as a consequence of begin from subsequent 12 months.
Deloitte is asking for expressions of curiosity for a level apprenticeship program in cybersecurity, which in keeping with its web site goals at, “Closing Australia’s ability gaps by way of a novel trade, schooling and authorities co-designed program creating the nation’s smartest, sharpest, job-ready cyber expertise”.
In partnership with TAFE NSW, the College of Wollongong and Swinburne College of Know-how, Deloitte is selling a program that “combines blended research with employment at both a authorities division, an trade accomplice or Deloitte”.
Profitable college students, Deloitte says, will obtain nationally recognised {qualifications} of both a bachelor’s diploma in cyber safety from Swinburne College or a bachelor of computing science diploma (cyber safety) from Wollongong College.
In an analogous vein, Victoria College will provide an engineering diploma from 2023 by which college students will spend most of their time within the office slightly than on campus.
The brand new course, from which college students will graduate as programs engineers, is backed by BAE and the Australian Business Group.
The work part of the apprenticeship will happen by way of BAE and different engineering employers.
In response to BAE, this system is designed to assist meet recruitment for a whole lot and maybe hundreds of workers wanted to employees strategic defence initiatives in coming a long time.
There may be little query that diploma apprenticeships have the potential to bridge the hole between technical expertise, employment and better schooling in methods we have now by no means witnessed earlier than.
The gradual take up in Australia, with simply two packages beginning formally subsequent 12 months, means our progress trajectory won’t mirror that of the UK, which grew to 13,500 college students in simply 4 years.
There are a number of explanation why diploma apprenticeships are off to a gradual begin on our shores.
A pandemic that disrupted the sector can shoulder a number of the blame, although there’s additionally a common lack of know-how inside corporations of the aim served by diploma apprenticeships. There may be additionally little localised data to information these companies that need to accomplice within the course supply.
And with no obvious alternative for these wishing to undertake a level apprenticeship in Western Australia, there’s a actual alternative for certainly one of our 5 universities to tackle a management function in an initiative that would change the face of upper schooling.
• Professor Gary Martin is chief government officer of the Australian Institute of Administration WA
